LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
Lackland took the night off to fight crime through prevention during the 25th annual National Night Out Against Crime Oct. 7 at Lions Park in cooperation with the city of San Antonio and coordination with communities throughout Texas.
The 37th Security Forces Squadron hosted the crime and drug prevention event aimed at strengthening police-community relationships and increasing crime prevention awareness through demonstrations and dissemination of information to the public.
"The event [let people participate in fun and educational activities] and increases awareness of certain activities in their neighborhoods in order to greatly reduce crime," said Gary Johnson, 37th Security Forces Squadron police services manager.
Mr. Johnson elaborated that the night out was "to educate the community and have them interact with the people working to protect them."
Team Lackland united through entertainment activities such as free food, a face-painting booth and bounce castle, and informational demonstrations by Security Forces, firefighters, military working dogs, the emergency services team, bike patrols and crime dog McGruff.
"Most of the time, people only interact with police when they are being apprehended or getting a citation," said police services assistant Senior Airman Ronnie Vess, 37th SFS. "It was a good chance to interact with the public in a non-legal [environment] to let people know what we do and why we are here."
Mr. Johnson added that the event also gave the 37th SFS an opportunity to provide the community information about vehicle and property protection, available by applying for property IDs that enable community members to identify their property in the event of theft.
While the National Night Out campaign is usually observed the first Tuesday in August, Texas communities rescheduled for October when cooler weather would provide better conditions.